Mail-bag catching and delivering apparatus.



F. SCHMIDT. MAIL BAG CATCHING .AND DELIVERING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 12. 1915.

Patente d Nomj; 1916. 2 SHEETS-SHEET I F. SCHMIDT.-

MAIL- BAG CATCHING AND DELIYERING APPARATUS. APPLICATION FILED NOV., I2, 19].).

1,203,792 h Patented. Nov. 7, 1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

FEED SCHMIDT, OF SOUTH MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN.

MAIL-BAG CATCHIN G AND DELIVERING APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 7, 1916.

' Application filed November 12, 1915. Serial No. 61,012.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, F RED SCHMIDT, a citizen of the United States, and resident of South Milwaukee, in the county of Milwaukee and State of Vl'isconsin, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in- Mail-Bag Catching and Delivering Apparatus; and I do hereby declare that thefollowing is a full, clear, and exact description thereof.

The present, invention is directed to new and useful improvements in mail bag catching and delivering apparatus, whereby mail may be delivered to or received from raildelivered thereto in a practically simultaneous manner.

A further objectresides in the provision of a stationary mail-handling member which is movable from an operative position for cooperation with a. train-carried member to a retracted position away from the track, and which is actuated for movement to such retracted position upon passage of a train therepast.

A still further object resides in the provision of such an apparatus including means attachable to a mail bag which serves to support the bag in position either on the traincarriedmember or the stationary member.

With the above and other objects and advantages in view, the invention resides more particularly in the novel combination, arrangement and formation of partsmore particularly hereinafter described and particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of the improved apparatus showing the stationary member swung to operative position in conjunction with the train-carried member, this view being taken transversely of the line of travel; Fig. 2 is an end view if the stationary member of-the apparatus, looking from the track end thereof; Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view on line 33 of Fig. 1 showing the means for tripping the support which holds the member in operative position; Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional view on the line 4 4 of Fig. 2; Fig. 5 is a side view of the train-carried member of the apparatus, this view being taken in a manner similar to Fig. 1, but showing the entire train-carried member; Fig. 6 is a top plan view of the train-carried member, with portions thereof broken away to more clearly disclose the construction, and Fig. 7 is a transverse detail sectional view on the line 77 of Fig. 5 showing the clip for holding one end of the mail bag. Fig. 8 is'a fragmentary top plan view of the train-carried member showing a modified form of bag engaging portion particularly adapted for use in connection with bags which have no central binding; Fig. 9 is a transverse sectional view on the line 9-4) of Fig. 8.

Referring now more particularly to the accomjmnying drawings, the invention comprises a member A which is disposed at the side of the railroad track and which swings to co-act with a member B which projects laterally from the train, each of thesemem- .bers being provided with a means for holding a. mail bag in position to be taken by the other member, and each being provided'with a member for taking the mail bag when held in such position.

The mail bag which is used in connection with the present apparatus, designated at '10, has secured to each end thereof a loop as, which loop is subsantially rectangular in side elevation and has one side outwardly bowed and receiving the attaching ring g of the bag. This side is also provided with lateral projections a at the ends of its bowed portion which engage with the clips of the train-carried member as will be later set forth.

Describing now the member A there is provided a vertical standard 5 which rotatably seats in a base 6 and which carries ver-- tically spaced parallel arms 7 which are braced to the standard by a V-shaped bracelnember 8 secured at its bight to the standard and at its ends to the intermediate portions of the arms, the standard and arms being. preferably composed of pipe sections.

Secured transversely at the ends of the arms are upper and lower bag engaging members which comprise horizontal bars projecting at the sides of the arms to form upper and lower holding fingers 9 and 10 respectively at the forward sides'ofthe arms and upper and lower receiving fingers 11 and 12 at the rear sides of the arms, the

bar portions forming these receiving-fingers movable to .vided with an arm being offset inwardly for a purpose to be construed in connection with .the' normal direction of travel of the train-carried member B. Each of the holding fingers 9 is provided intermediately on its outer side with a projection 13 and a spring finger 14 extends from this projection and is bowed toward the free extremity of the finger whereby the loops 0; fingers to hold the bag in place in such manner, however, that the bag may be readily snapped from the fingers upon engagement of the train-carried member B. The receiving fingers are adapted to engage in the loops 1: 'when the bag is carried by the member B and to detach said loops from some what similar holding means carried by the said member. To provide a resilient buffer for the ba when engaged by the fingers,

bufi er-block s 15 are slidably mountedat the outer sides of the receiving fingers by means .of pintles 16 which project from the blocks through longitudinal slots 17 in the fingers: Each of the blocks is also provided with a pin 18 which projects into a bore 19 formed in the shoulder caused by inwardly offsetting the fingers, and springs 20 surround the pins between the buffers and the shoulders. To provide means for preventing accidental detachment of the bag from the fingers after it has been caught thereby, the lower finger 12 is provided in its bottom face with a recess 21 'in one end of which is pivoted a pawl 22 which normally depends from the finger, but which upon engagement by the loop as, swings into the recess to permit passage of the loop therepast. The finger 11 is pro- 23 which extends up wardly from the body bar adjacent the olfset of the pin and which is directed laterally parallel to and over the pin and carries at its free end a pivoted pawl 24 which nor mally lies against the finger, and which is permit passage of a loop 00 therepast and between the arm 23 and finger 11. The horizontal portion of this arm is passed through the buffer-blocl'r 15 of the finger 11 and thus conduces to the provision of av compact and relatively strong structure.

Taking up now the train-carried member B, there is provided a substantially U-shaped body 25 having its arms disposed horizontally and spaced apart a distance slightly less than the distance between the arms 7 of the stationary member, whereby they may pass therebetween. The intermediate portions of the arms are connected by a bar26, and to secure the member in desired position 0'1 a train the bar 26 and the bight portion of the body' are secured as by U-bolts 27 to a bar 28 which projects outwardly from the car.

The bag-receiving portion of the trainare confined on the carried member comprises a hook bar 29 which projects outwardly from the bar 28 and is'secured thereto in any desired mannor, as by threading its end in a socket of said bar. The bag-holding portions of the .member B are carried by the; ends of the body arm, and to provide the clearance for the bags, the arms are offset rearwardly with respect to the normal direction. of travel of the members. arms are inwardly bowed jectionsSl extending inwardly from the ends of said bowed portions. These projections carry clip members each comprising a pair of spring plates 32bolted together to embrace the respective 'projectioniil and extending rearwardly thereof, with their free end portions oppositely bowed at to receive the bottom side of arespective bag loop 00. The projections z carried by these portions of the loop extend between the plates and insure the loop being held in The ends of the as at 30, withproa vertical position. The loops are of such in position to be speared by the receiving fingers 11 and 12 of the member A. Thus each of the members is provided with ameans for detachably holding a bag and with a means for detaching a bag from the holding means of the other'bag, the detaching and holding means of each member, however, operating entirely independently. To providefor swinging the member A to a retracted position in which it would lie parallel of the trade-the base 6 is provided with an angularly disposed and preferably sinuously curved slot 34s extending through a vertical angle of substantially and the standard 5 carries a projection 35 which rides in this slot, the standard being vertically movable in the base whereby the weight of the standard may cause a partial revolution thereof due to the camming ac.-

tion of the slot 34. When the member is in operative position, extending transversely arm comprises alever 38 mounted for vertical pivotal movement at the outer end of the lower arm 7, and a second lever 39 intermediately pivoted under th'earm 7 and loosely connected at one end'to the lever 88 and engageable at its other end by means of a depending pin 40 with the trigger arm 37. This lever 38 is angular in shape, with itsupper inclined into the path-"of movement of the'lower arm of the member 13. Thus as the train-carried" member B pends at its free end'a dog 43.

fingers 42 are adapted to project into the passes the member A, the trigger-arm 37 is tripped and the member A swings by gravity to a retracted position, the swinging movement of the member being in the direction of travel of the. train-carried member- Although the type of mail-bag'shown at w is the one 0st generally employed in railway mail service, there is sometimes used a type of bag bound only at its ends and the hook arm 29 could not well'be used with this type of bag, as said member engagesbags at their centers. A. modified form of receiving member for such bags which are not bound .at their centers is therefore shown in Figs. 8 and 9. In connection with this form, the usual train-carried member B is used, but the hook arm '29 is removed, such removal being readily efi cted by means'o'f its threaded connection to the member. At each arm of the body adjacent its offset is an'arm 41 which projects to a 'ratus comprising a base, a standard position forwardly of the bag-holding portions of the memberB andawhich carries inwardly of its outer end a forwardly projecting finger 42, from which pivotall y dehese rin 's a? of a ba carried in the usual mannor by the stationary member A and to remove said bag therefrom, the dogs 43 operating to prevent accidental displacement of the bag, in a manner similar to the dogs of the receiving fingers of the member A, it

being noted that the fingers 42 are similar in function and operation to the fingers 11 and 12 and in movement therepastpass inwardly of said fingers. This'moditied receiving means may be used also in connec tion with the type of bag illustrated in the drawings.

I claim:

1. In a mail bag catching and delivering lel and having adjacent intermediate port'ions oppositely bowed, bag-carrying loops eachhavmg one side engageable in the bowed portions oi a clip, and lateral projections on said side of the loop engageable between the fingers.

3. A mail catching and delivering appavertically and rotatably movable in the base, gravity controlled means tending to rotate the standard, an arm carried by the standard for manipulating bags, a lateral pro jection on the standard a trigger-arm movable under the projection to hold the standard against movement, and a lever intermediately pivoted to the arm and an angular lever pivoted to the end of the arm and adapted to rock the first lever upon engagement by a train-carried member moving in conjunction with the apparatus.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto my hand at Milwaukee, in the county of Milwaukee and State of Wisconsin, in the presence of two witnesses.

FRED SCHMIDT.

Witnesses FRANK S. RATGLIFFE, M. E. Downnz'.

Go'pies of this patent may be obtained for live cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

I leshington, D. G. 

